POLICE in Smethwick have recovered an estimated £500,000 worth of cannabis from an industrial unit on the Bridge Industrial Estate in Bridge Street North.

The unit was raided by eight officers on Wednesday, January 6 evening at 5.15pm, after police received information from concerned members of the local community. A warrant was secured a under the Misuse of Drugs Act on Wednesday afternoon, and officers wasted no time in taking action.

Over 1,000 cannabis plants and a number of bags full of the Class B drug were seized from the location. There were no persons present at the address.

Sergeant Adam Yeomans was heading the operation. He said: "We are very grateful to the local community who have shown a huge amount of courage in coming forward and making us aware of such a large scale drugs operation.

"We are working closely with all the businesses on the industrial estate and are visiting all the units individually to make sure there is no illegal activity taking place."

Inspector Bal Mand is responsible for policing in Smethwick. He added: "We are extremely pleased with the results of Wednesday's warrant.

"We have not only taken a massive amount of drugs off our streets but we have also shown the local community we have listened to their concerns and acted rapidly.

"We will continue to work closely with our communities to crack down on drugs and encourage anyone with information about crime in their area to speak to their local neighbourhood policing team today."

No arrests have been made and enquiries are on-going.

Police want people with information to contact the local neighbour policing team on 0845 113 5000 or call the independent anonymous charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.